Recuperating
by Not Even The Turtle
Summary: "April. I don't think things are ever going to be the same." ... "Two years is a long time to be in solitary confinement. I'm just glad your all alive."
1. Chapter 1

**Alright, first off, this does not mean my current story "Half and Half" is going to be stopped. These chapters are going to be a lot shorter, and just something for me to work on when I have writer's block with my main stories. All the same, I hope you enjoy reading this story, and follow along, because I have a lot of plans for it! :D**

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"Down the hall, first door to the left. Down the hall, first door to the left." April repeated to herself quietly. Cold flourescent lights lit the gray walls of the long corridor, leaving her no shadows to hide in and making her black outfit stand out. Silence hung thick in the air and no signs of life were present. Even with no apparent danger present, the kunoich kept her senses alert. Finally she came to her destination, a tall, intimidating metal door with a lit red sign hanging above it that read "Do not Enter". Without wasting a moment, April went over to the electronic lock and plugged in a scrambling device into the USB port. Her blue eyes fell on the LCD screen as numbers quickly flashed across it until they landed on the security code to unlock the door.

"Mikey?" April whispered as the eighteen year old looked past the heavy entrance into the brightly lit white room. She noticed the younger turtle curled up in the corner of the room, his back to her. What she really wanted to do was scream, cry, and run over to the little turtle to hold him forever in her protective embrace. But the sight of the light green turtle, stripped of his mask and usual equipment and looking scarily thin made her stop from doing so. It was also partly because of the murmuring coming from Mikey's direction.

"Oh no, now I'm hearing things." came the mumblings, "First I talk to myself all the time, now I'm going crazy. Donnie will be so mad at me if I go even crazier than I already am, ha! Or maybe Raph will hit me upside the head and I'll get over it. Yeah, that sounds about right. Or, or maybe Leo-"

"Mikey!" April tried again, this time a little louder and stepping into the room, noticing how perfectly white everything was, including the single toilet in the space. She nervously looked over her shoulder. There was not a moment to spare.

"-then he'll tell me to meditate or something and I'll tell him I can't help it, cause I'm crazy. Then he'll tell me crazy people don't know their crazy, and I'll be like, oh yeah! Your so right Leo. Geez Leo's such a-"

"Michelangelo!" she yelled finally, having crossed the room to set a hand on the unnervingly thin shoulder. Mikey jumped into the air like a startled cat, spinning around to face the red-head.

"April! Oh my goodness!" Mike exclaimed, never stopping his flow of words and embracing the girl, "Its been forever! How did you find me? Are the guys with you? Where's master Splinter. Wait. Am I dreaming? Oh god, I hope this isn't a-"

"Can it, Mike." April said sternly, grabbing the turtle's wrist and pulling him out of the door, seeing no problems with him besides his obvious malnutrition. She wished dearly that she could use a less terse tone with her newly rescued friend, but she supposed she would just have to live with the fact that he was okay and move on. And fast. Mikey followed her without hesitation, refusing to be silenced as he went on about how he thought everything was a dream. April chose to ignore the rambling ninja due to her fixed schedule, and moved out into and down the somber gray hallway. She knew where she was heading and moved swiftly, refusing to let go of Mikey until they reached another metal door in the otherwise bare corridor.

As soon as she let go of the turtle's wrist to hack the lock, Mikey gasped and grabbed her black one piece outfit by the sleeve. He kept rambling, but this time so fast that April had a hard time making anything of it. She was about to snap again at the maskless turtle, when she finally cracked the code for the lock.

"Mikey." April spoke, drawing his attention to her, "Help me get Leo out of here, okay?"

"Leo?" Mikey stated, a pause finally finding its way into his speech. April only nodded as she pushed the door open to reveal a dimly lit room. The pungent smell of blood mixed with sweat met her nostrils as she stepped inside the cold area, causing her face to contort in disgust. She was shocked to see the stark contrast between the completely empty room she had just been in, and the blood stained, torture device filled room she stood in now. It took all of her willpower not to stare in utter horror at the various knives, restraint clad chairs an other various blood covered, pain inducing tools that riddled the small area. Once she looked past all of them, in a secluded corner tinted burgundy, sat a defeated looking Leonardo, chained by the wrists and ankles to the ground.

"Leo..." April breathed as she quickly made her way over to the maskless leader, Mikey never once letting go of her sleeve and continuing to ramble about how this all was a bad dream. Once again April chose to ignore him, but it was starting to concern her how clingy the turtle was being. Shrugging off her worries, April reached out and touched another thin shoulder, though Leo's was much more boney than Mikey's was. Leo did not react, he did not even flinch. Becoming panicked that something was seriously wrong with the absence of response, April drew her favored weapon from its place on her black leather belt.

With a simple flick of the wrist, the kunoich severed the chains that had been rusted by the blood that coated them. As soon as metal clattered against the cold cement floor, Leo leapt into action, lunging for the tessen gripped in April's hand. April quickly moved away out of the ninja's immediate range. Obviously in a weakened state, Leo stumbled and clipped his chin on the ground, writhing and creating gutteral sounds that sounded similar to a growling alligator. April became stunned at the animalistic display and found herself frozen to the spot. In the end, it was Mikey's rambling that saved them.

"Oh my gosh. That can't be Leo. Crap. My brother got turned into a nutcase that can't even walk. Oh geez, what am I gonna tell sensei?" Mikey started to say, speaking a little louder than he was before with the panic rising in his voice. Suddenly the growling stopped, and Leonardo became still.

"M-Mikey?" came the surprised voice of the more familiar Leo. Almost immediately, Mikey was on his brother, grabbing his arm and helping him to stand up.

"Leo! Oh, Leo! This is really happening, isn't it? Please oh please let this not be a dream. Leo are you okay? What happened? I can't really see you in this light." Mikey sputtered out. Leo did not respond, but instead stared at April cynically, as if trying to recognise her.

"April..." Leo finally came to the conclusion. The words brought April back from her shock and she stepped forwards, grabbing Leo's unattended arm carefully to support the leader between both her and Mikey, though the other turtle looked like he may need to be carried as well.

"Its me. And yes, Mikey, this is real." April said soothingly as she led the two to the door, "I will explain everything later, but right now we need to get you guys out of here. So lets move."

Both turtles nodded, one silently and the other along with a loud exclamation of their escape. April did not look back. She moved out into the lit hallway and went straight ahead, not even daring to glance at the injuries that she intuitively knew Leonardo had sustained. A few left and right turns through the plain gray corridors led the three to an intersection of four directions she could take. Instead, the teenager simply waited in the middle of the crossway and listened to Mikey go on about how they should still be moving.

"Excellent. I see you have completed your half of the mission, Miss O'neil." came a deep, thickly accented voice from behind. April only turned her head and nodded at her sensei.

"Master Splinter!" Mikey rejoiced as he all but dropped Leo to immediately latch onto the rat. He buried his face deep in the familiar red robe before noticing the other two presences, "Raph! Don!" Mikey yelped as he tried to make his way over to a rather battered and defensive looking Raphael. Splinter stopped his loud son by laying a paw on his plastron.

"My son, the time for rejoicing will come. But that time is not now." He seriously yet gently told Mikey, who nodded and went back to hugging his father's waist. With a sigh, Splinter took April's burden from her, cradling a limp Leonardo, who had passed out when Mikey dropped him, "Let us leave this place at once."

April nodded and Mikey jumped up and down with excitement. Soon all six of them were running down the hall, April and Splinter making sure to slow their pace to match the weakened turtles. The red-head fell behind the rat and Michelangelo, who was keeping one hand attached to his father's clothing. April purposely placed herself in between Donatello and Raphael.

"It's good to see you Donnie." April allowed herself to say as she took in the sight of the tall, skinny turtle. To her dismay, Don did not respond. He only looked ahead silently, not even glancing in her direction. She was shocked to even see a trace of contempt in his expression.

"He's been like that since Sensei and I found him. He had some kind of collar around his neck." Raphael answered April's unasked question. She turned her head to him, noticing he was keeping his distance from the rest of the group, if only slightly. His emerald gaze was dark as he gazed at her, "April. I don't think things are ever going to be the same." The statement in no way surprised the girl, for she had been thinking the same thing.

"Two years are a long time to be in solitary confinement." April whispered sadly, "I'm just glad your all alive." She got out as they reached the end of the long hallway, where they leapt through an already broken window from her and Splinter's entry. Just as they all passed through the window into the cold night air, red lights and sirens began blaring throughout the TCRI building they had just escaped from.


	2. Chapter 2

April held her breath as the four turtles entered their home for the first time in two years. Splinter kept moving past the turnstiles to tend to his unconscious and bloodied son in Donatello's lab, which doubled as an infirmary. The rest of the boys stood quietly before the entrance to the lair, with the exception of Mikey, who was murmuring under his breath as he clung to April's shirt.

"Welcome home guys." April breathed out, finally allowing herself a small smile. She pat Mikey on the head and edged closer to the turnstiles, coaxing him into the area. Muttering unintelligible things under his breath, the shortest turtle followed the redhead's lead, along with the other two silent turtles. She led them all into the kitchen right away, asking if they were hungry.

"I'm starving!" Mikey said loudly in reply, while Raph nodded and Don remained unresponsive. April looked worriedly at the three, directing them to sit down at the island in the middle of the kitchen. To her surprise, the silent and still Donatello was the only one who acquiesced, while Mikey continued to cling to her and Raph flat-out refused.

"Alright. How about something easy on your stomachs. We have chicken noodle soup and saltines, does that sound okay?" April asked, not wanting to push the guys into anything they did not want to do.

"What about pizza?" Mikey asked innocently, looking up at her with expectant eyes. April smiled again and just shook her head.

"I think we'll have to wait a couple of days for your system to get used to food again." She said slowly looking around and once again taking in the sight of the terribly thin turtles. Mikey huffed and continued to mutter, disappointed about the food he would have to eat. April reached up and pulled out two cans of soup from the cupboard, along with a pan to heat it up on the stove with. As she set the pan on the heated coils, she realized something.

"Mikey, why don't you sit down with Donnie?" April said, not allowing the turtle to argue with her as she shoved him into the stool next to the tall, silent turtle. Mikey quickly let go of April's shirt and attached himself to Donnie's arm. With a small nod, the girl ran off towards the dojo, quickly glancing around until she laid eyes on her target. She grabbed the four pieces of cloth before dashing back off into the kitchen. At the sight of the masks in her hand, Raph and Mikey smiled widely, and April returned it, glad to see her friend's smiles for the first time in the past two hours they had been together.

"Thanks, April." Raph said as he took his red mask from her hands quickly, tying it around his eyes. April noticed how he hesitated to tie the mask on, unlike Mikey, who immediately grabbed up his bright orange band and whipped it on in a frenzy.

"Ahh! It feels so right to have it on!" Mikey said, leaning into Donatello as he began to relax. The mahogany eyed turtle was the only one not to look at her when she brought in the masks, which only raised her concern for him. Gently, April touched the tall turtle's slight shoulder, sliding the purple mask onto the countertop in front of him without a word. She let her hand linger there for a moment before straightening up.

"I'm taking Leo's mask to him, I'll check in on him and Sensei while I'm there." she told the three, "Raph, why don't you serve the soup when its ready, then you three can go wash up." April received two numb nods in return, and she smiled soothingly, "Leo will be fine, I'm positive." She said in a gentle yet firm tone. Mikey smiled at her and Raph nodded again, then April left the area to head for the lab.

The sight that met her inside of the lab did nothing for her mood. For the first time since their rescue, April was able to get a good look at Leo's injuries. He was bruised from head to toe, some fresh and some fading. He was lying on his side as Splinter cleaned out a deep gash in the flesh between his coastal scutes and the pectoral scutes of his plastron. His shell had been carved into, the all to familiar symbol of the foot clan etched forever into the hard keratin plates. April subconsciously let out an animalistic growl, her rage and hate for the despicable clan bubbling up inside of her.

"Calm yourself, April." Splinter said, quelling the storm that threatened to rage inside of her. She bowed slightly before coming closer to the father and son pair. Splinter gently touched his long lost son, resting one paw on the green forehead, while the other traced a long scar running down Leonardo's right arm.

"Is he going to be okay?" April asked finally, fear making its way into her voice. Her mind flashed back to the room she had found the battered turtle in and shuddered.

"Leonardo will live." Splinter assured the kunoich. He motioned to some gauze near her and she handed it to him, "His physical wounds will heal. Most of them are superficial, and I was able to treat the more severe injuries before they began to fester. The wounds to his spirit and mind are the ones that concern me, as with the others." April nodded, understanding what he meant, and watching as the rat methodically wrapped Leo's plastron so that the wound in his side was covered, "What are your observations?" Splinter asked, moving Leonardo on his back after he was finished being treated to show the scores of scratches and cracks on his plastron. April stared for a moment as the rat moved the turtle so that his head was resting in his lap.

"Well..." April began slowly, "Leo was acting really strange when we found him, almost as if he didn't recognise me and Mikey. He lunged at me and tried to grab my tessen after I cut his chains. He... he was almost like a rabid animal, Sensei..." April trailed off as she shook her head. Splinter nodded silently, sensing the girl had more to say, "Mikey won't stop talking. I mean, I know he talked a lot before... well, before. But now, its like he can't keep quiet, he's always muttering to himself or trying to talk to the others, and its like he has to be touching someone at all times."

"I have also noticed this behavior." Splinter added with a nod, appreciating the intuitive young woman's input.

"Donnie really worries me, second to Leo." April admitted, "I don't know what happened when you guys found him, but he hasn't talked since we found him, and won't look at anyone." Splinter sighed at this.

"When Raphael and I found Donatello, he was wearing a device around his neck, much like a collar." Splinter explained, "Raphael had mentioned something about electricity being involved, but you would have to inquire about this of him yourself, for he is the one that removed the device."

"I will, Sensei." April said, "And about Raph, he seems distant, or scared somehow. Which isn't like Raph at all... Master Splinter, is there something I'm missing with him?" Splinter's eyes momentarily flashed with anger as she spoke, which April knew was not directed at her, but it surprised her all the same. Before the rat could answer her, though, a loud crash came from the kitchen. Splinter looked at her sternly.

"Go." He instructed. April nodded, lying the blue mask on Leo's plastron that she had come to deliver, then bolting towards the kitchen.

"I-I'm sorry Raph I didn't mean to-" Mikey was saying as he reached out to touch Raph's bleeding hand. Shards of ceramic glass lay on the floor with the remnants of broth and noodles.

"Don't touch me!" Raph yelled, jumping back and slamming his shell into the fridge as he did so. Mikey whimpered and withdrew his hands, reaching for Donatello's arm for comfort. Raph was breathing heavily and started sweating, his gaze sharp as he glared at the offending turtle.

"Raph, calm down." April soothed, stepping over the broken bowl towards the panicking turtle. Raph shied away from her, so she did not dare to touch him, "Why don't you go take a shower to calm down. I'll clean this up." She said, stepping between Raph and Mikey so that his eyes locked with hers. Slowly his breathing steadied and he gave a sharp nod before suddenly bolting off to the bathroom. April sighed and turned to Mikey, who was already in tears and was sobbing out how sorry he was.

"Shh, its okay Mikey." April said, wrapping her arms around the crying turtle. Every sob he choked out broke her heart a little more, and she could only wonder if things were ever going to be the same again. In an effort to distract him from his misery, April told Mikey that Splinter had said Leo was going to be fine.

"R-Really?" Mikey stammered through his tears, looking up at her with hopeful eyes. April chuckled, wiping away his tears with her long black sleeve.

"Really." She replied. At this the orange masked turtle hugged her close, and April squeezed back, closing her eyes and she took in the comfort she had missed for so long, "I missed you guys." She whispered.

"I missed you too." Mikey replied, his face still buried in her stomach, "I wish you cold stay here with us tonight." April giggled again at this.

"I guess your in luck, then!" She said, causing Mikey to look up at her in confusion, "I actually have been living here with Splinter since you guys... Went missing. You don't think I'd just leave my own home after I just got you back, do you?"

Mikey's eyes widened as he squealed with delight, squeezing her with strength she did not realize he still had, then turned to Donnie excitedly as he relayed the conversation, even though Don had been there the whole time. April started when she realized that Don had his mask on. She was even more surprised when she realized he was looking at her, and smiling. April smiled back, ecstatic that the purple wearing turtle had seemingly got over his gloom. Something nagged at the back of her mind, though, as it always did when her intuition was telling her something was wrong. She forced the feeling back, just reveling in the moment.

"I'm glad your all okay." April said, and actually received a nod from the previously unresponsive turtle, though he still was silent. Maybe things would get better after all.

How could they not?


	3. Chapter 3

Raph took his time in the shower, calming down almost the instant he felt the warm water hit his shell. He let out a long breath as he placed his head against the cool tile in front of him. The turtle had not had a hot shower in two years, and almost took delight in it if it were not for the pink water swirling down the drain from his blood.

"Two years..." Raph grumbled, remembering what April said, "How could it have been two years?" To the turtle, he could have been imprisoned for ten years, or only a matter of days. He really did not know before he was rescued, time had seems like such a trivial thing when you were trying not to have a panic attack at every moment of the day. Raph shuddered as he remembered his holding cell that was barely three by three feet and completely dark at all times. He also recalled being drug out of the cell, being strapped down on a metal table then being beaten on a daily basis.

"Maybe that was all just a dream..." Raph muttered, thinking about how normal everything seemed. He lifted his right hand to touch his stomach, a place his torturer had favored kicking quite often. Feeling the soreness that responded from his touch, Raph knew that what he had experienced was reality.

"Uh... Raph?" April's voice suddenly sounded somewhere past the shower curtain. Raph immediately blushed. Even though the boys never wore clothes, they all felt as if being in the shower was a moment of privacy they all needed.

"Y-Yeah April?" Raph managed to get out, peeking around the curtain. Sure enough, the red head was standing in the doorway of the bathroom, looking slightly baffled. Raph could not help but notice how much the teen had changed over the past two years. Not only had she become more developed as a woman (which he would never admit to noticing), but her demeanor was totally different, from they way she spoke to the way she stood. As if to prove his point, April's face turned stoic, blank, something she would not have done before in a situation like this.

"Why do you have your mask on in the shower, first of all?" April pointed out, and Raph immediately touched the red fabric surrounding his eyes.

"Just felt to soon to take it off again." Raphael admitted, looking away from her as he began to feel abashed. April only nodded in understanding.

"Alright, then second. Did you want me to shut the door? You left it wide open." She asked, motioning to said door. Raph was suddenly confused. Had he left the door open? He did not remember closing it, but it was wierd that he did not.

"Sure, I must have forgotten to shut it." Raph shrugged, pulling the curtains shut once again. He heard April chuckle slightly and the sound of the door clicking shut. His mind began to wander once again as he went back to his shower. He let thoughts of his brothers enter his mind. Before today, he had not heard anything about them, not knowing if they had been captured like he had or were looking for him, or if they were even alive.

He sighed as he thought of Leo's condition. Apparently, all three of his brothers had been captured, and were even in the same building of all things. To his knowledge, they had no idea he was there either. Raph shook his head at the thought of his brothers being tortured like he was, remembering the two raw looking red marks on his brother's throat when he had removed the shock collar from Donnie. At least he had a bigger room. One that was spacious, not closed in, and had lighting in it. Unlike his. Confined. Dark. Quiet.

"Shit." Raph suddenly said loudly as he tore open the curtain. He stumbled out of the bathtub in a panic, his heart racing with the sudden overwhelming urge to be free from the small bathroom. In his jumbled attempt to escape, he tripped over the rim of the tub and the tile floor found his chin. Now Raphael was cursing even louder as he scrambled around the slippery floor that was sopping wet because of him. In the end he had to crawl in a mad panic to the door, reaching up for the lever and pushing against it. He fell out into the cold air of the lair, quickly getting to his feet and panting heavily.

"Raph!" April called, rushing over to him as she saw his flustered state. She reached out and touched his shoulder with the tips of her fingers, only to have him jerk away suddenly with a wild look in his eyes.

"I said, DON'T TOUCH ME!" he yelled at the girl before dashing off towards his bedroom. He stomped inside of the dusty, unused room, not realizing he once again left the door open. He flicked on the lights to reveal the sweet retreat that was his own personal space. Most everything was as he left it, aside from the bed, which had been neatly made and was waiting for him. Accepting the offer, Raph jumped into the bed, looking up at the ceiling as steam curled up from the still hot water covering his skin.

Raph shivered suddenly, wrapping his heavy blanket around him loosely. It was not long before the weight of the thick blanket became suffocating, and Raph began to feel his anxiety rise as he felt the soft cotton press against his skin. He angrily kicked off the offending covers and settled with his top sheet, which was much thinner and more inviting. The red masked turtle sighed.

"What is wrong with me?" he asked no one in particular. He knew he was acting strange, but could not pinpoint just what it was he was doing for some reason. Maybe it was because none of this seemed real at the moment. Everything was just to perfect, and it felt wrong to mess it up by admitting he had a problem. Sighing yet again, Raph huddled in his sheet and resting his head on his pillow, deciding to get some rest and think about it the next day.

"Raphael." Came Splinter's voice just as the turtle had started to doze off. Raph groaned to let his Master know he was awake, and there was an almost inaudible chuckle from the rat, "Would you like me to shut your door, son?" His father kindly asked.

"No!" Raph said, sitting up straight immediately, his eyes wide at the thought of being closed in again. Splinter looked at his son gently, as if he understood what was going through Raph's mind. As Splinter nodded and turned away from the door, Raphael suddenly knew what was wrong with him, "Shit. I can't be claustrophobic."


	4. Chapter 4

Splinter awoke suddenly, a disturbance within the lair being the cause. The rat sat up slowly and read the time from the wall clock in the lab. It was four thirty, he had slept in half an hour late. Besides his concern with the time, the disturbance that intruded on his slumber also was on his mind. Immediately, Splinter looked to Leonardo, who to his relief and dismay, was still lying down the way he had left him on the cot.

The wizened rat rose up from his medative position. He had never fallen asleep in meditation before, so it came as a surprise that he had even fallen asleep in the first place. What was more, the ninjitsu master still felt tired even after the extra sleep he had obtained, and found that his muscles were cramped and in need of a good stretching. He hummed thoughtfully as he walked out of the laboratory, wondering if the presence of his sons had worn him out, or if all of the sleepless nights he had spent worrying about them had just caught up with him.

Splinter checked in on Raphael first, the door still wide open from the night before. For a split second, the father's heart stopped as he worried his son would not be there. Upon further inspection, though, Raphael could be heard snoring lightly, and the ball of sheets covering him rising and falling gently. Sure that it was not this turtle that had caused the disturbance, Splinter moved on to Michelangelo's room.

Splinter pushed open the door slowly, quietly, and was surprised to find the lights on, and the bed empty. The blankets and sheets that had been covering the bed neatly were strewn about the floor of the already messy room. Splinter began to panic at the realization his most outgoing son was missing, but his sensitive hearing picked up sounds from the next room over, Donatello's. He rushed there instantly.

"Donatello?" Splinter called out as he opened the door quickly, causing a turtle to jump up in surprise.

"M-Master Splinter!" Michelangelo stuttered as he stared at his father. The orange masked turtle was holding on to Donatello's hand tightly as he sat upright next to his taller counterpart. Michelangelo looked like he had been crying, the cloth around his eyes darkened with moisture. Donatello had a blank, vacant expression on, and was not even looking at his distraught brother.

"What is the matter, my son?" Splinter asked calmly from the entrance to the room. Michelangelo gulped in a breath of air and started speaking with a speed that could make any auctioneer proud.

"IwastryingtosleepinmyownroomlikeAprilsaidbecauseshesaidDonnieneededsomespacebutthenicouldntsleepandicameinhereandsleptwithDonnieandthenihadanightmarewherenoonewasaroundandiwasbackinthatwhiteroomandeverythinghadjustbeenadreamsoifreakedoutandth-"

"Shh!" Splinter attempted to hush the child as he quickly made his way over to the rambling turtle, who had begun to sob uncontrollably when he was cut off, "It is alright, my son. I am here with you now, and I will never lose you again." He said as he brought his son close in an embrace. Michelangelo had started to speak again, but the words were unintelligible between the crying and how fast they were being said.

"Come with me, Michelangelo. I will brew some tea to calm your nerves." He said, not knowing whether his son could hear him or not, then looked up at the purple masked one, "Would you care to join us, Donatello?"

For several long moments, Donatello was unresponsive, and Splinter became fearful of this complacent attitude. But before the rat could repeat his question, the turtle slowly shook is head. It was not the answer Splinter prefered, but at least it was an answer.

With that, he led Michelangelo into the kitchen, all the while the turtle mumbled, sniffled, and clung to his arm. They went on like this the whole time Splinter prepared the tea, which consisted of healing herbs with soothing properties that would hopefully put Michelangelo at ease.

"Here, drink." Splinter told the orange wearing teen, who nodded with a "Thanks!" and sipped at the hot beverage. The rat found it peculiar how his son kept one hand one the cup, and the other always lingering on Splinter's arm or robe. Seeing how shaken up he had been, Splinter decided not to pursue the subject of his distress at the moment, and instead offered a point of interest, "Would you like to help me check over Leonardo?"

"Would I?" Michelangelo immediately replied loudly with a huge grin to match, "You've been working on him all by yourself! If I could help, that wold be great!"

"Alright." Splinter gave a little smile and a sharp nod. Michelangelo grinned back again, his mind taken off whatever was bothering him at the moment and going on about how he would have been a doctor if he was human. When they entered into viewing range of Leonardo, Mikey faltered in his speech badly, gulping several times as if swallowing his words.

"Gee, Splinter..." Mikey said,staring at his heavily bandaged brother, "He looks pretty bad. I mean, I know I look bad right now, but he looks really bad. Are you sure he's gonna be okay?"

"Of course he will be fine." Splinter said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "But as I told April, his spiritual wounds will take much longer to heal than his physical ones." Michelangelo nodded sadly, keeping his eyes on the scar along his brother's arm.

"Maybe he was tortured." He began, catching Splinter off guard slightly by the comment, but the rat kept silent, "He... He's all cut up and bruised. There were weird tool things all over the room he was in, and there was blood everywhere. A lot of blood. I think it was all his, too. Raph looked like he was beat up real bad, too, he has bruises on top of bruises! And Donnie... Well, he won't say much, or anything for that matter, but I know he was hurt bad too, by the marks on his neck."

"Yes, it does seem as if they were... tortured. Both physically and mentally." Splinter spoke in slow agreement, not sure if he should ask about what was on his mind, "What of you, Michelangelo, were you not hurt as well?" The turtle gave out a short burst of laughter at that, confusing his master greatly.

"Oh, no! I never got touched or anything." Michelangelo said with a wave of his hand as if to throw away the idea, "Actually no one ever did anything to me. All I remember was being tossed in that really clean room by some guys, but I couldn't see them because I was blindfolded. The next person I saw was April." Splinter sat up very straight at this.

"What exactly do you mean by that?"

"Just what I said." Michelangelo stated simply, "April was the first person I had seen or heard from in that room." Splinter went rigid, the statement processing in his mind and turning over slowly. He could feel his blood begin to boil, ut did not express it as his son went on with a sad chuckle, "Funny, huh? Nothing bad ever happens to me, but my brothers get tortured and beat up until they freak out, can't talk, or won't wake up." Even though he smiled weakly, Splinter could see the shine of unshed tears behind the mask, and brought Michelangelo in close to his side hushing him gently as another sob escaped the orange clad turtle's lips.

No words could heal the way his son was feeling now, so Splinter held on to the small turtle with all of his might. Pure hatred filled the rat's heart at the thought of his son being in confinement for years, with no contact what so ever with another living being. Obviously, this had a major psychological impact on the turtle, who was social by nature.

Deep in his joints, down to the very core of him, Splinter could feel the amalgam of emotions shake his system. He felt pity for his sons, who had been drug into a situation they may never climb out of. His happiness was unrivaled at the idea of his boys all being alive and within the safety of his grasp, and only knew the bounds that shackled it with the grief and frustration that they still were not out of the woods yet. But the strongest, most prominent emotion boiling within him was the rage that had filled his soul for the past two years.

He vowed years ago that he would get his sons back, no matter what it took.

Now he vowed revenge upon the ones he knew were responsible for his family's despair.


	5. Chapter 5

April rolled over in her bed, which was stationed in an extra room that used to be for storage, but now was her personal space in the lair. She gazed sleepily at the red blinking lights on her alarm clock.

"Seven fourty..." She grumped. The red-head was never one to sleep in, it made her feel queasy to lay around for to long. Huffing angrily at herself, April let her bare toes peep out from under the covers to meet the cool air of her room. She let out a yawn as she sat up and stretched her arms up high above her head. For a few seconds, she sat there groggily, wondering what she was supposed to be doing today.

A foolish grin spread across her face when she suddenly remembered her friends just a few doors down. April and Splinter had looked feverishly for the four missing boys for two years, and it felt great to know that they were safe at home. The girl's smile disappeared quickly as she also recalled the state of the mutant's. Deciding he had better go check on them, April hurriedly put on her fuzzy yellow slippers that lay at her bedside and rushed out the door.

The room closest to hers belonged to Raph, so she checked in on him first. His door was still wide open, the way Master Splinter had told her to leave it the night before, and the hot head was sprawled across the top of the bed, plastron first, with one leg dangling over the side. Light snoring penetrated the air, indicating that the turtle was still deep in sleep. April chuckled slightly and moved to the next two rooms.

Donnie's door was open, as was Mikey's, both rooms vacated. She lingered by Donatello's for a moment. April let her small hand rest on the door frame as she peered into the darkened room. She had missed all four of the turtles, each one being a brother-like figure to her, but losing Don had a bigger impact on her than she could have ever imagined. She had missed his quirky nerdiness, his technobabble that she would pretend to understand, and the clumsiness he unwittingly displayed every time he would try to swoon her over. Most of all, though, she missed the sincere caring attitude of his, and the willingness he always had to put her before anything else in his life. While it had made April feel smothered or angry at times, it also made her feel important and welcomed into the little family of five.

And now she might never get to hear the turtle's endearing words again. April's nails scraped against the wood frame as she clenched her hand into a tight fist. She could feel the grief and fury rising in her, but forced it down almost as quickly as it started to grow. She could not afford to feel those selfish emotions when her friends needed her.

April moved on, not bothering to check Leo's room; she knew where he would be. Entering the lab, the young woman was surprised to find Mikey asleep, curled up tightly against Splinter. The wise rat flicked his tail in greeting as she came up behind him and peered over his shoulder. Leo was still unconscious, laying on his shell with his head resting in his Father's lap.

"Do you know where Donnie is?" April whispered as quietly as she could manage so as not to wake the orange wearing turtle. Splinter nodded slowly, motioning with his tail towards the kitchen area. April smiled and let her open palm graze Splinter's shoulder as she left as both a thanks and a comforting gesture. She and the mutant had bonded closely during the boy's absence, and he had become even more like a second father to her than before. It pained her immensely to think of how Splinter must be feeling over his son's current state.

Walking briskly to the kitchen, April noticed the distinct aroma of coffee wafting through the air. She was surprised she had missed that little clue to Don's whereabouts earlier. The caffine-addicted turtle must have been craving the bitter drink. She doubted he was able to have any during his stay at that dreaded TCRI warehouse.

"Good morning, Donnie." April spoke softly as she mindfully walked into the kitchen. She did not want to spook him into further regression. As predicted, the tall turtle was leaning over a mug of steaming coffee. He was seated at the island in the center of the cooking area, both hands on the chipped white cup as he stared into the dark liquidy depths vacantly. April shifted uncomfortably when Don did not respond to her. She did not want to push Donnie into anything he was not ready to do, so she went about her own business, collecting the materials for a hearty breakfast of Coco Puffs with chocolate milk.

Keeping silent all the while, April assembled her meal and took the seat next to the purple masked mutant. The blue-eyed girl kept Don in her peripherals as she scooped a large mouthful of cereal into her mouth and crunched it up. She managed to catch a glimpse of the turtle taking a small sip of his beverage and smiled a little.

_"At least he can do something." _She thought to herself, though she noted that he was still fairly zombie-like. As April was fishing out the last bits of her cereal with her spoon, her mind wandered to the one turtle who could not do anything. Leo was always the brother taking the initiative, moving his family forward, trying to keep things together. Without that stable pillar, she knew his brothers would not be able to make a complete recovery.

"Hey Don?" April asked tentatively. This time she got a small response as the turtle's lifeless eyes flicked over momentarily to her. It was enough to encourage April to continue, "You know everything is going to be okay, right?"

The turtle did not move for several seconds, leaving April to feel as if she had wasted her words. But she kept her eyes trained on Don long enough to catch a barely noticable nod. She smiled, thinking that this was a sign that things were truly getting better. But soon after, the turtle tensed up, still staring at his coffee. Then he slowly shook his head. April was confused at this gesture.

"Don, what's wrong?" she asked out of instinct. The turtle shook his head again, this time frowning deeply and bringing his brows close together, "Donnie... You can tell me anything, just trust me." April soothed, trying to coax the turtle out of his shell (metaphorically).

The turtle's mahogany eyes darted immediately to April, and she was taken aback by the sudden intensity with which they burned. But it lasted only for a moment before the stare went blank once more, this time they seemed to sink even further into darkness than she had seen so far. Don's hands fell limply away from his mug, and hung at his sides as he stared back into his drink, hunched over so that his abdominal scutes were touching the edge of the table.

April tried not to let out a deep breath and held back the tears that were beginning to cloud her vision. Once again she had failed to help one of her friends.


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for the delayed update. This one is super short, but contains major plot points and twists that will be useful later! The next one is coming soon! Please review! :)**

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April kneeled beside her sensei, who still had Leonardo's head cradled in his lap. She stared dully at the near motionless form, observing the subtle rise and fall of his plastron. She clenched her fists tight at the thought of the insignia carved onto the other side of a once naturally patterned shell. How cold she have let this happen?

Guilt gnawed its way from the inside of her heart, out, as she remembered her failed attempt to help Donnie out a few hours ago. She felt so useless. She had searched for them frantically for two years, finally rescuing them, and for what? They were broken, physically, mentally, and spiritually. At the rate things were going downhill, the entire Hamato clan was going to shatter into a million pieces. Was it all she could do to sit back and watch her best friends, her family, go through such torment?

April squeezed her eyes shut as she remembered her other failures during the turtle's absence. She was useless.

"April." Came the deeply concerned voice of Splinter, jolting her out of the miserable thoughts swirling in her head, "Negativity will not solve anything. If you wish to help them, keep hope alive. When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on."

"But Sensei, what can I do?" She whispered quietly, not daring to look into the burnt amber depths that were gently holding her into place, "I try and try, but whenever I think I'm doing something right..." The redhead looked up at the ceiling and blinked rapidly to keep the tears at bay. She let out a shuddering breath as she continued, "I made things worse with Donnie, what if... What if things turn out like..."

"Like they did with Mister Jones?" Splinter finished the statement that was obviously too hard for the girl to say out loud. Shamefully, April nodded and let her head hang in defeat. The rat hummed thoughtfully for a moment before he took a paw and lay it on her thin shoulder, "Perhaps what Donatello needs is not the kind of comfort you are offering. In fact, I suspect that none of my sons will be willing to grapple their inner demons directly any time soon."

"What do you mean, Sensei?" April asked in confusion, her eyes at last drifting up to meet Splinter's. The rat visibly relaxed when she made the contact, as if he had been waiting for her to do so all along. It came as a surprise to her when he let loose a warm smile, something she had not seen for a long time.

"Your intuition is strong, April, you know this. If you are ever in the wrong, all you have to do is find another way." Splinter pulled his hand away from her, carefully moving it to Leo's side. April quietly watched as the father turned his unconscious son over onto his plastron, revealing the angry emblem of the Foot on his shell. Her crystal blue eyes glared coldly at the unwanted mark, willing it to disappear forever, "Why don't you start here?"

April looked up questioningly at Splinter, noticing his mask of calm over the rage she knew lay underneath. When he gave no further explanation, she returned her gaze to Leo's shell. What did Splinter mean? What could she do with this?

The answer came to her like a bolt of lighting to her brain. Slowly, she made her way over and let her fingers trace over the mauled keratin plating, feeling the grooves and indents where Leo's shell had been carved into. She looked back at Splinter and gave a knowing nod.

"Let me go get Mikey first."


	7. Chapter 7

Raph had always been the hardest to wake up, the last to wake up, but never had he slept so late in his entire life. First of all, Sensei would normally have woken him up with a crack of his tail. That would wake him up instantly usually. If Splinter had not checked in on him in the morning, there was Leo, always the pleaser, and ever the most annoying alarm clock there was. Next to Mikey, of course. The little bugger would jump on top of him if he ever slept in through the two previous warnings.

But things were not normal at the moment, so he was allowed to sleep in until two in the afternoon.

With a yawn Raph wandered into the kitchen, still feeling worn down even after his eighteen hour nap. He blamed it on the realization of his condition before he was able to get some sleep. Claustrophobic? Him? Ridiculous. He reasoned to himself that he was no doctor, and the fear of enclosed spaces did not cover all of the weird things he had been doing since they had come home, so he must be wrong.

Speaking of doctors, Raph looked from the untreated cut on his hand that had crust over during the night, to Donatello. The tall turtle was leaning against the island's edge, peering into a cup of coffee that had long since gone cold. In an effort to distract his mind from his foreboding phobias, Raph sat in the stool beside his silent brother and lay his injured palm on the tabletop facing upwards towards the ceiling.

"Hey, Don. Got anything for this before it gets infected?" He asked, looking at the blank expression beneath the purple mask. If Donatello had heard his brother, he did not let on. His empty deep brown eyes stared at the unappealing cold coffee as if it had just told a bad joke. Raph grunted in irritation, wanting to hit his brother and snap him out of whatever trance he was in, but found himself holding back. Not because he knew Donnie was going through a hard time. No, he was holding back out of fear.

Raph did not know what it was about touching or being touched, but he hated it, feared it even. Just the thought of physical contact made him cringe away from Don slightly. The feeling of fear, though, came along with another emotion; anger.

"Dammit, Donnie!" Raph grunted, curling his wounded hand into a fist and bringing it up as if to slug his brother on the shoulder. He tried with all of his might to make the contact, but found his arm halting as dread crept up inside him, willing him to refrain from landing the blow. The turtle let out a furious growl and pounded his fist against the island's surface. Immediately he recoiled, hissing in pain as blood seeped from his hand. Crimson droplets splattered against the counter, finally bringing Donatello's eyes up from his coffee.

And then his whole body jerked into motion. Raph leaped back in surprise when Don jumped up hurriedly, his eyes wide and wild as he knocked over his coffee. The taller turtle opened his mouth and moved his lips as if to say something, but nothing came out. Raph brought his bleeding hand close to his plastron and gave Don an incredulous look.

Don stood motionless for a few seconds with the same frantic look on his face and his mouth agape, staring his brother in the eyes. Raph shifted nervously under the gaze, looking away sharply as he felt trapped by it. He only looked back once Don began to move again, finding another blank and dull expression on his face. The purple masked head hung low in defeat.

"Don..." Raph started, stopping short when he realized he did not know what to do next. So he stayed silent, watching Don's back as the genius turned and walked off to his lab. Raph sighed and slumped back into the stool. He watched as the brown liquid mixed with the maroon, swirling together to create an ugly muddy color. The seventeen year old shoved himself away from the counter, moving over to the kitchen sink to rinse his hand off.

"Great going, dip-shit." Raph mumbled to himself, "Not only are you scared of your brother, you scared _him._" With that, Raph snatched the stained dishcloth that was hanging from the faucet and began cleaning up the mess on the table. Once he had cleared it off and set the empty mug and soaking cloth into the sink, he moved towards the lab where Donnie had gone.

He had completely forgotten about the rest of his family before he had entered the laboratory. April and Mikey were kneeled down beside Leo, who lay on his plastron on a foam mat on the floor. He could not tell what they were doing, because they hid most of Leo out of his line of sight, but he decided not to bother them upon seeing the serious look on their faces. He moved his eyes to see Splinter standing beside Don over by the first aid supplies, speaking quietly to him about something.

Not wanting to intrude on their conversation either, though he knew it was one-sided, he grumped and made his way over to the empty cot, planting himself firmly on the bed and crossing his arms as he leaned back to look up at the gray ceiling and let his mind zone out.

"Oh, hey Raph!" Mikey said after a few minutes, bringing his attention back to his family. He looked back at the baby blues staring at him. Mikey had a look on his face that Raph had never seen before. It was as if his brother had matured overnight, a serious yet gentle expression that Raph would have been glad to see, if the circumstances that he knew were behind it were not so dire.

"Hey. What are you doing?" Raph finally got to ask. The short turtle smiled proudly, moving slightly to the side so that Raph could see Leo's back. He sat up straight immediately, gasping slightly at the sight. He rushed over as soon as he could, not noticing how both April and Mikey moved well out of his way. He reached out for Leo's shell, stopping short when the irritatingly familiar hesitation to make contact held him back.

He turned to Mikey. Usually he would slap his brother on the back for doing this sort of thing, but he could not. So Raph said the only thing that came to his mind, "Amazing."


	8. Chapter 8

"Amazing."

When Raph said that one word, Mikey swelled with pride. His chest puffed out as he clutched the metal file in his hand to his chest. April grunted next to him, a pout on her face. Mikey chuckled and elbowed her in the side.

"April helped too." He said, gaining a smile from the red-head, "We're not done yet, as you can see. We still have to finish the last petal, then add some details. After that, we are going to stain it so it stands out more... Do you think he'll like it?"

"Of course he will."April answered seriously for Raph, who had not seen much of Leo's shell other than a small glimpse before they had changed it, "There is no way he could have lived with that footprint on his back."

"Yeah, this is awesome, Mike." Raph said, still staring down at the shell. Mikey scratched the back of his head bashfully, giggling happily. He scooted over to the opposite side of Leo, across from Raph, and laid his hand on his work. Mikey traced the delicately carved curves with his finger like he had a hundred times in the past five and a half hours. His touch grazed over the smoothed out spot where the ugly Foot symbol that had been carelessly cut into his brother's back. It was now covered and made into a perfect circle, the center of the flower that now blossomed on Leo's shell.

"The Chaenomeles, our kamon." Splinter spoke up from his position just above and behind Raphael. Mikey looked up at his father, then Donatello standing next to him.

"Our family crest." Mikey said with a smile, going over the inverted symbol that now covered the majority of his brother's shell once more with gently strokes without looking down. He watched as Don slowly looked at the pattern, his eyes momentarily flashing with an emotion that disappeared to quickly for Mikey to catch. The tall turtle then held out the antiseptic paste and gauze that was in his hands to Raph, who was still gawking at the artwork.

"Raph, Don has something for you." April said, a smile apparent in her voice. The red masked turtle looked up quickly, apparent surprise on his face when he saw what was being handed to him. Mikey watched as Raph stood and took the items, mumbling something quietly to Don before going over to an empty counter and began unravelling the gauze.

Don looked on quietly, wandering over slowly to stand behind Raph and watch him work. Mikey knew that beyond Don's lifeless expression, he was worried about them. He had seen it when he had escaped to his brother's room, after his nightmare. His taller brother could not express himself through words or actions at the moment, but he was still Don. Mikey knew him well enough to be able to tell when his brother would normally act distressed.

Mikey turned his eyes back to the crest, taking his file and moving it to gingerly create the outline of the last petal. He followed the lines he had traced out in black marker to the end of the petal where it bumped out. A calm settled in as he felt the vibration of the file grating against the scutes, methodically carving in a single direction with the grain of the keratin structure. April soon came in behind him, squatting close to his side and using her own smaller file to smooth out the bumps and imperfections he missed. Mikey had been ecstatic when April came into the kitchen, where he had been clinging to Don and rambling on about how they needed to catch up on Super Mecha Force Five episodes, and asked for his help to rid Leo of the heinous stain on his pride.

They had been fortunate to find Don's metalworking tools that included a set of files that varied in side and grain density. April needed Mikey's artistic talents for the project, and Mikey needed her attention to detail. Together they had painstakingly laboured over it, making sure to erase all traces of the Oroku kamon without wearing the shell too thin, then marking out the symbol that Splinter had more than happily lended his robe as reference for.

"Are you sure he'll like it?" Mikey asked for what felt like the thousandth time. April halted in her work, pausing before leaning into Mikey's side and wrapping her arm around him.

"You are doing a good thing, Mikey." April pulled the turtle in close, "What the Foot did to him, to all of you, will never be forgotten, but we can sure as hell keep our dignity and honor. This is just the first step in Leo's recuperation, a well as everyone else's. If that foot hd stayed there, we would be reminded of what they did every time we saw it, and it would be like the Shredder himself was stepping on him as if he were a mat. No matter how I look at it, this could only be for the better." April let go of the turtle's shoulder in favor of grabbing his face and turning it so that he was looking at her. For a second Mikey was afraid she was going to shoot lasers out of her eyes at him with the intensity of her stare, but tat quickly faded into a playful smile, "Besides, it would look pretty strange if we stopped now."

Mikey giggled and nodded in response. The girl let go of his face and they both contentedly went back to their work, which was now of the utmost importance to Mikey.


	9. Chapter 9

April kept her face carefully hidden under the black hood of her robe. She was not hiding who she was, for she sported a pure white symbol of her clan on her back that would be easily identifiable to enemies. It was a warning. She only wore the loose hanging robe because it was dangerous for her gender to be known while walking alone in the back alleys of Brooklyn at night. The kunoichi moved swiftly and silently, checking the rooftops every so often, partly wishing to see the familiar black and red uniformed ninjas she dreamed of tearing to shreds. It seemed luck was on their side tonight, though.

Soon she made it to a familiar manhole cover without any encounters. Careful not to make any noise, she lifted the lid and slid her petite frame into the dark void. She lowered herself to the concrete platform beside the rushing sewer waters tentatively so as not to get her robe mixed in with the filth. April girded her loins, bringing the back of her cover through her legs and tying a knot at her abdomen to keep the fabric in place, revealing her skin-tight black footies.

From there it was a sprint back to the lair, hood falling back as the odor filled breeze rushed past her. She would make sure to check over her shoulder every few steps, ever on the cautious side. April soon came to a ladder in the dark passage that led up only a few feet to the abandoned subway lines. Not bothering with the ladder, she leapt expertly onto the ledge above her, pushing open the maintenance duct and closing it behind her once she was through. She darted to her left, basically backtracking, except higher up. It was only a matter of five or so minutes before she reached the familiar turnstiles that welcomed her home.

"Hey, Mike! I got the gel stain! Did you find any- oof!"

April was cut off as Mikey slammed into her, knocking the pint of all-purpose, low fume stain out of her hand. He was sobbing at a level that worried the red-head the instant she caught the sound of it, and quickly dragged him over to the couch, eyeing her onlookers as Raphael and Splinter sadly watched from the sidelines. Both looked exhausted and drained, slumping over slightly and eyes red. The only difference between the two's demeanor was that Raph looked significantly angrier than his Master.

"Shh, it's okay, Mikey. What happened? Is everything alright?" She asked as she ran her hand over his smooth scalp. When she had left only an hour ago, everything seemed fine. Mikey was working on perfecting Leo's shell art, actually being _quiet_ for more than two minutes, and the others had seemed peaceful as well. To her distress, it seemed the turtle was too busy trying to find air for his lungs to answer her. April pat his shell firmly as he began coughing and wheezing from crying so hard.

"He's been like that ever since he found out you left." Raph mentioned over her shoulder, his hands hidden away by the arms pinning them to his sides. His green eyes made contact with her blue ones, and she noticed the signs of internal struggle within them, "He musta not realized you went out, and freaked when he turned around and you were gone. We tried to calm him down, but he turned out like this."

"I told him I'd be back soon..." April mumbled as she stroked the hysterical turtle, who was just beginning to calm down, hiccuping as his face remained planted in her now soaking shoulder.

"I told him that." Raph fumed as hs voice rose, "But he wouldn't listen! I told him, April, I really did!"

"Hey, okay! I get it tiger, calm down!" April ordered, bewildered, wondering why Raph was so angry all of a sudden. At her comment, Raph flinched harshly and drew back a step, bumping slightly into Splinter who had been standing just behind his red masked son. Unexpectedly, the hot-headed turtle gave a small yelp, jumping forwards and leaping over the couch in one swift motion. April ducked her head down as he sailed over her, and watched as he tumbled into a stand, facing Splinter in a battle-position from the other side of the couch. The girl and the rat blinked in unknowing unison as they stared at Raph. The turtle went wide-eyed and let out a breath that April did not notice he had been holding, falling back into a relaxed stance.

"S-sorry..." Was all that Raph mumbled before taking off for his bedroom. April stared in the direction he went for a few moments before looking up worriedly at Splinter. The rat shook his head and sighed, sliding a paw over her forehead as thanks before he moved to follow his spooked son.

For a few moments all was silent, and it took a second or two to realize Mikey was still and much quieter. She shifted slightly so that she could see his face, unsurprised when she found he had dozed off within a matter of seconds. With a heavy huff, April squirmed around until she found a position on the couch that she could lay in semi-comfortably with the turtle still latched around her waist. She bit her bottom lip when she felt a shudder run through the turtle, and his breathing hitched slightly. Quiet mumblings came from his mouth as he snuggled up closer to his captive.

"Calm down, Ape." She whispered to herself as she felt heat behind her eyes, "Just think logically. What do your friends need?"

And so she began to put things together, keeping to the facts and trying to keep her emotions in check as she went over her friend's symptoms. Mikey's hysteria and constant babble, Raph's painfully obvious claustrophobia and refusal to make physical contact, and Don's catatonic behavior and inability to speak. Those were the basics of their condition, she could feel it in her gut. She would have to evaluate Leo once he came out of his comatose, but even then what could she do?

"Anything." She told herself immediately, "Think! What helps you..." April trailed off as she thought of her coping mechanism, which lay currently under her pillow away from prying eyes, "Maybe that will work."


	10. Chapter 10

"Two for you, two for you, and two for you!" April chimed happily as she handed the three conscious turtles empty composition notebooks she had found in Don's lab. The purple masked turtle always managed to have a surplus of notebooks for his experiments, but showed no traces of recognition as he numbly took the black and white books in his hands.

"And, what is this for again?" Raph asked, eyeing April suspiciously from his seated position on the couch. Mikey echoed the question, bouncing excitedly at the prospect of an empty notebook. April grinned a lopsided smile as she watched the turtle, who had seemingly recovered from last night's episode.

"Anything you want." April explained, gaining a groan from the red masked turtle that was seated as far away from the wriggling ball of energy that was Mikey. April cleared her throat and went on, "Anything, that is, as long as both notebooks are used for entirely different things. I don't care what you do to them, or what you may or may not write inside of them, but do something in them every day."

"Cool! Like, draw a spaceship, or write a song, or- or write a fanfic, or-!" Mikey began, and the red-head was quick to hush him.

"Ah-ah! Keep it to yourself, Mikey! No one will be looking at the journals unless you tell them to." April scolded and instructed, waving around a yellow, spiral bound notebook littered with pink flower stickers in one hand, and an all black one with blue, red, orange, and purple decorative tape striping its cover in the other hand. Both were thick and had papers sticking out of them here and there, and the edges had clearly been worn. The black one even looked like it had water damage to it, "I started this one before I moved in here," April explained, holding up the yellow notes, "And this one after we began searching for you."

"This is stupid." Raph said, tossing his notebooks onto the couch beside him, "I'm not writing a bunch of mush about what happened to me, if that's what you want."

April crossed her arms, tapping the black notebook impatiently against her side, "I never said you had to _write _anything, Raph. Besides, Splinter already gave the okay for this idea, and I think it could really help in the long run."

"Whatever. I don't see how this-" Raph grabbed a book and shook it back and forth, "is going to help anything." April sucked in a breath impatiently in an attempt to calm her irritation. She felt her expression dull as she quelled her anxiety caused by Raphael's stubbornness. But she had expected this, and it was exactly why she was willing to share what she was about to say.

"It helped me." She said quietly, looking Raph in the eye, then looking at Don and Mikey. Mikey tilted his head questioningly, looking up from his new notebook to view April's stoic face.

"Helped ya with what?" Mikey asked the dreaded question, and April let her shoulders sag as her insides trembled. She slowly sat down on the floor, crossed her legs, and sat the yellow notebook to the side. She ignored the looks of confusion coming from the two turtles on the couch as she slowly opened the black notebook somewhere in the middle, flipping quickly through the neatly numbered pages until she found the one she was looking for.

"Alright." April stated hesitantly, letting go of a trembling breath. She looked up to Raph in particular, "I-I'm gonna read a few sentences I wrote a while back. Just... Don't freak out, okay?"

Raph gulped hard at this and nodded deliberately, obviously sensing the apprehension in April's voice. She scanned through the page of neat handwriting that got worse the further down the page she read. Her shaking fingers tenderly touched one sentence in particular, and she suddenly did not feel like doing this anymore.

"Go ahead, April." The girl jerked her head up suddenly, realizing that the world around her was becoming blurry. She wiped her eyes away quickly so that she could see Mikey, who had spoken to her and was now kneeling in front of her, a look of deep sadness uncharacteristically upon his features. She looked up and was surprised not only to see Raph, but Don focused on her now. She sucked in a breath for courage and nodded, then began reading.

"_I found Raph's mask today. It was pinned through the eye-hole to the brick wall of the warehouse I had been searching. I will keep it with Leo's in the dojo until they come back home. It scares me to think that the Foot knows where I am, knows I'm looking for them, but what they don't know is that is gives me hope. They're alive, somewhere."_

April was holding it together pretty well at this point, but decided not to look up at her listeners and focused on finding the next sentences to read.

_"Raph's mask has a message written on it in hirigana, and Sensei says it's from _her_. It says that if we don't hurry up soon, he will turn out just like..."_

This time, the red-head faltered terribly, unable to complete the sentence. She swallowed hard several times and blinked rapidly to keep her tears at bay. She was not ready to share that part, not yet. Trying to recover quickly, April flipped the page and read the first sentence that was written in bold letters at the top of the next piece of lined paper.

_"I won't give up. Not knowing my brothers are out there. I know Raph wouldn't give up, won't give up. I'll find him. I need his attitude, his gruffness, his spirit. Until the day I get that back, I will never give up on him."_

April's voice was more unstable than an unfinished skyscraper during an earthquake by the time she finished. She brought the notebook up so that it covered her face, feeling her shoulders betraying her as they began to shake with the oncoming sobs. She could not afford to show weakness now, she had to support them. She may have gone through a lot, but in her mind it was so much smaller than what her friends had to go through. Before Mikey could reach her to touch her shoulder, she straightened up and put on a mask of control, though her eyes shone brightly with unshed tears.

"I know it isn't your thing, Raph." April said determinedly, looking directly at the emerald eyes of her friend, "And you may not recover from your ordeal any time soon. But I want to help. I know its only been a few days, but this needs to begin now, and not later. That goes for all of you," April moved her gaze from Raph, to a sad and mumbling Mikey, then over to Don, who was looking down at the notebooks in his hands. Her gaze travelled from the rigid teen to the direction of the washroom, where Splinter was cleaning the last turtle up, "Even Leo."

The room was deathly silent for a few minutes that stretched out for an eternity. All eyes cast down to the writing pads in their hands, and April could only hope that her friends would listen to her advice and that she could actually help instead of hurt this time. The red-head only looked up when Splinter cleared his throat, brining the attention of all present to him.

One look at the glimmer in her sensei's eye and she knew what was happening. Without him having to say another word, April jumped up and dashed off to the lab.


	11. Chapter 11

Leo grew weary as his consciousness found him, the reason being the female voice that was somewhere to his left. Not again. Not her. He could not bear it another time, yet he knew he would be told to wake up at any moment, and he would begrudgingly acquiesce. Pain came soon after that. Then the stories would start.

Not wanting another torture filled day, Leo rolled away from the voice on instinct. He was expecting the chains to stop his from making a complete turn, so he was surprised when he felt the momentum of the quick motion continue. He completed several rolls before jolting awake, eyes snapping open and a warning growl escaping his lips.

The anger that first bubbled up inside him subsided when he caught sight of the unbelievable form before him. For a moment, he could not find the words to say, and was only able to drink in the sight of the black garbed red-head that kneeled before him.

"A-April...?" Leo stated hesitantly, not even bothering to try to sit up. The girl relaxed at the sound of his voice, and a smile, an actual _smile,_ placed itself upon her lips. When was the last time he had been smiled at? He did not know, but it filled him with an immeasurable amount of relief to see it.

"There you are, Leo." April whispered so quietly that he almost did not catch it. She looked as if she had just been crying, or was about to at any moment. Leo struggled with himself. What should he do next? Speak to her, hug her, cry? Something in Leo's chest burned as he searched for an answer, but was cut off from finding one abruptly when several green feet and bare pink toes came into his line of sight.

"L-Leo!" Mikey yelped, falling to his knees and crawling over to the newly awakened turtle's side so that Leo could clearly see the blue eyes against an orange mask. Mikey's voice, filled with uncertainty and concern, brought a geyser of memories that sprung forth without warning to his mind.

His brother, his otouto, was alive. _Alive._ And it was not only him, Raph had crouched down to look at his brother, and Leo could only assume that the last pair of olive legs belonged to Donatello. His team was okay. The leader suddenly felt the tightness around his eyes and attempted to move his hand up to touch the blue cloth he had longed to wear for so long. Pain raced up his side as his muscles protested the motion and he let out a hiss.

"My son," Splinter. His father. Another left-for-dead family member, alive and hopefully well. The deep voice laced around him and he savoured the moment through the searing pain threatening to pull him under the blanket of unconsciousness once more. Leo shut his eyes tight and clenched his jaw in order to push the pain away as he had so many times before, finding it harder to do so now that he felt... Safe. Such a strange and foreign feeling.

He felt warm hands under his body as murmuring broke out in the room, and he could hear his loved ones bustling around the room in a frenzy. What for, he did not know. But it felt good to have them in his surroundings.

The blue masked leader opened his eyes slightly once he felt himself being settled into soft cushions, unsurprisingly finding Mikey's face only inches away from his own. Tears were streaming down the younger's face and Leo could see the tremble in his lips. Leo did not think, did not speak, only letting his aching right arm drift to Mikey's wet cheek before something hot streaked down his face. He was so glad it had all been lies.

Karai had lied.


	12. Chapter 12

"Leo?" Mikey called his brother's name in concern. His face was right in Leo's, not wanting to miss a single moment of their reunion. Raph and April were running around wildly, gathering blankets and ice packs on Splinter's order. Apparently, the leader in blue had a fever that blossomed over night. Mikey stared at the leaf green eyelids that were squeezed shut, willing the to open so he could believe his brother was actually awake.

_What if Leo goes back to sleep? _Mikey's mind began to race with the oncoming panic, _No, he's gotta stay awake. He'll get better. He's home. I- I fixed his shell, so he has nothing to worry about! Well, besides that scar on his arm... And the cuts on his face. The cracks on his chest, the bruises, not to mention he's sick, and..._

Mikey let his dreary thoughts continue on, and he felt his tears that had been building up under his eyelids flow freely at last. He wanted to wipe them away, he had been crying so much lately that it was beginning to hurt is pride. But he did not want a single moment to go unnoticed, so he stared unblinkingly at his newly awakened brother. His efforts were not in vain. Just barely, Leo opened his eyes, immediately making contact with Mikey's gaze. The orange masked turtle felt like it had been an eternity since he had last seen the cerulean depth's of his brother's soul. It struck him painfully hard to notice the darkness deep in his brother's eyes, where the light of pride and honor had once been.

Mikey was snapped back to the present when Leo lay a hand on his cheek, brushing away the endless stream of water running down them. It was then Mikey noticed he was shuddering horribly, no doubt with oncoming sobs. Then, to his utter disbelief, a tear fell from Leo's eye, hitting the bridge of his snout before landing on the comforter of the bed. Unable to contain it any longer, Mikey gripped Leo's hand in his, a harsh sob escaping his lips as his shoulders jerked forwards so that Mikey's forehead was resting against Leo's.

"L-Leo! Please, please be okay! I miss you so m-much!" Mikey admitted with a shaking voice. Before Leo could reply to his plea, however, he went limp. The hand that had been up against his cheek suddenly relaxed, and if Mikey had not been holding it, it would have fallen to the side of the bed. To say Michelangelo had freaked out would be an understatement, "Leo?" He asked, heart pounding, threatening to choke him as it rose to his throat.

"Donnie!" Mikey whipped around to the one person he always would turn to in a situation like this. He ran over to the tall turtle, grabbing his thin frame and shaking the expressionless teen roughly back and forth, "Don, you have to do something! Leo- Leo is going under again! Bring him back! Please, Donnie! He needs you! Come on man, quit standing there! Help him!"

Mikey was literally screaming in Donatello's face, still shaking him while crushing his biceps under his strong grip. Mikey's throat burned and it threatened to close up on him as he continued to scream. Out of the corner of his vision, a whir of dark brown streaked towards him. And then Splinter was there, prying Mikey's hands from Donnie's arms and enveloping him in an embrace. His Master muttered words of comfort and assurity into his ears, but Mikey could not evn begin to process them as he began to once again sob uncontrollably.

* * *

"What happened?" April asked as she ran back into the lab with armfuls of blankets, Raph just behind her with a ziplock bag of ice and a torn up dishrag. She hurried over to where Splinter was containing a hysterical Mikey, taking note of the three-finger shaped bruises forming on Donnie's upper arms, but Splinter was quick to send her over to Leonardo's side. April ha no doubt in her mind that the, once again, unconscious turtle on the medical cot was the source of Mike's anxiety. The red-head covered him up with a thick, tattered quilt she had found, then ran over to the medical supply cabinet to grab a thermometer.

"One-o-three." She muttered as she read the turtle's temperature. A high fever indeed, but it was just that; a fever. At least it was something she could fix, unlike the useless state he was in before. She quickly snatched the ice bag and rag from a hesitant looking Raphael and placed them on Leo's forehead. She took a deep breath in as she looked around at the broken family before her.

Raphael looking on nervously from a distance, Mikey sobbing into a saddened Splinter's robes. Even she herself felt lost in the seemingly depressing situation. But what surprised her was Donatello, on the far side of Splinter, obsessively writing in his notebook, tongue sticking out in that quirky fashion she was used to seeing when he was completely indulged in something. This gave cause for something to stir in April's chest.

Hope.

"Guys." She said loudly enough to draw the attention of those present, with the exception of Leo and Don. A small smile curved her lips as she leaned back, arms supporting herself against Leo's bed, "Leo woke up. Things are going to get better. I promise."


	13. Chapter 13

**Sorry for the wait, but for your patience I have rewarded you with a bit longer of a chapter!**

**For all you Donnie fans, this chapter is a lot about him.**

**And for you Leo fans, that is the next chapter. ;)**

**After these two chapters, things are going to pick up, so buckle up! Its gonna be a bumpy ride!**

* * *

Splinter demanded Leo remain on bedrest until he was feeling better and his fever subsided. Everyone was sent to bed soon after Leo had fallen back asleep, and only Mikey was allowed to stay by his side. The only reason the orange masked turtle was even allowed that much, though, was the huge tantrum he threw when Splinter tried to coax him out of the door. Not wanting to push his son into another anxiety attack, Splinter allowed Mkey to stay with Leo for the first night, but made it very clear that Leonardo was not to be disturbed until he recovered completely. Mikey happily agreed with those terms, and slept in Leo's room with Donnie for the next three days, taking the taller turtle with him on account of his not wanting to be alone.

That was why April was up so early. She wanted to prepare a breakfast that was easy on Leo's stomach, but hearty enough for the other three turtle's satisfaction. Morale was on the tp of her list, and she wanted to make sure that everything went well today. Leo had just begun to move around, and April wanted to welcome him back with open arms. Now that they could all have a nice meal together, the red-head planned to use this opportunity to speed up the healing process.

"Ah, hey Raph!" She exclaimed when she saw the half asleep turtle stumble into the room. He grumbled a hello and immediately went to the island across from where she was preparing pancakes, eggs, and oatmeal, but April shook her head and motioned for the old wooden table across the room, "Let's all have a family meal. We'll sit together for once, and even Leo can join us." The kunoichi blurted out her plans as she looked expectantly at Raphael.

"You mean I hafta sit wifall ofem'?" The sleepy turtle grumpily slurred out the words. He ground his palms into his eye sockets, propping his elbows on the edge of the island, when April sternly nodded her head. Raph let out an irritated groan before groggily shaking his head in response, "I really don' wanna sit wif' so many people, Red."

April nearly choked on the air in her throat at the nickname. She stared wide-eyed at the turtle, wondering if he knew what he had just said, but it was obvious that Raph was not as alert as usual and had failed to notice her falter. With much effort, April pushed back the memories that threatened to invade her mind like water bursting through a floodgate, and continue on with a hoarse voice, "Look, Raph, just go sit down. Me and Splinter can sit on either side of you and give you some space so you won't be so crowded. Sound good?"

For the first time since he entered the room, Raph looked at her. April was expecting the turtle to refuse her again by the way he squinted his eyes at her, but to her surprise, he let out a reluctant sigh and made his way over to the kitchen table.

"Good morning!" Rang out a cheery voice before the red-head could question Raphael's actions. She turned her eyes to the two new presences in the kitchen; Mikey and Donnie. The orange garbed turtle had a wide grin over his features as he kept one hand latched onto Don's bicep, where a yellowish bruise faintly showed itself from the other day. Mikey had made a big deal of apologizing to Donatello for bruising his arms with his vice-like grip, but the purple masked turtle did not seem to mind. In fact, Donnie had not really regarded anything done wrong to him aside from April's questioning.

Though he was not as vacant as he was the week before, Don was still mostly oblivious to his surroundings. Instead of emptily staring off into space, he was now obsessively writing in his notebooks every day. The young genius carried both books with him wherever he went, writing things down in one notebook labeled "One" on the front almost constantly. April had only ever seen Don write in the notebook labeled "Two" once, and it had happened so abrupt and suddenly that it startled the kunoichi. He just snapped One closed, and instantly whipped open Two, feverishly scribbling over a random page, all of his muscles becoming tense and his gaze even more idle than usual. Before April could take another breath, though, Donnie was back in One, calmly writing down whatever it was he was thinking.

Today was no exception. Even as Mikey greeted her, Don was looking over his notebook, eyes glazed over as they fleetingly scanned over the page.

"Morning Mikey." April returned, smiling back at the shorter turtle before glancing questioningly over at Donnie. Mikey immediately took the hint and nudged his brother in the side.

"Hey, Donno! April says hi!" Mikey chuckled. April once again found herself in awe as Donnie actually responded. His red-brown gaze slowly lifted to meet Mikey's bright blue one, then over to the female in question. Donnie's jaw clenched as he deliberately lifted his head, then just as carefully lowered it. A nod.

"Hello." April replied with a barely supressed grin, "Why don't you sit at the table and wait for Leo and Splinter so we can all have a family meal?" She said while nodding towards the table where Raph was slumped over the flat surface, snoring lightly from the awkward position he was dosing in. As the two walked past, April grabbed Mikey and gave him a suspicious glare, "Come make breakfast with me."

"Uh, sure." he replied, letting go of Don with extreme circumspect. Once April had the young turtle by her side and the taller one had made it to his seat successfully, where he began writing in notebook One, April handed the mixing bowl of half stirred batter t Mikey.

"How did you do that?" April whispered as she passed him a wooden spoon to stir with. Mikey averted his eyes sheepishly.

"Do what?" he asked as he simpered, letting the girl know he knew exactly what she meant.

"Get Donnie to respond in a good way?" April expanded, making sure to keep her tone light and the shadow of a smile present on her lips. If there was one thing she knew Mikey never dealt well with, it was negativity. This past week of constant ups and downs was proof of that, if anything, "I tried talking to him, but he kind of shut me out." She admitted, shrugging as if she did not think it was such a big deal.

"Oh. That." Mikey deadpanned as he stirred the pancake mix, "Yeah, I've been talking a lot," April had to chuckle at that, and Mikey shot her a playful glare, "I mean to Donnie. And I sorta found out what he likes and doesn't like right now."

"What do you mean?" April asked, an edge of seriousness entering her voice. Her eyes shifted to the table where the two turtles sat, glad that both were unaware of her conversation.

"Well, like, he relaxes when I talk about just stuff, ya know? Like pizza, kittens, clowns, painting, all that stuff." Mikey explained, and the red-head could tell that she was about to get an earful by the way his voice sounded disconnected from his mind, a quirk she had come to notice when they carved Leo's shell together, "But he won't look at me or nothin'. Its like he's not listening, but knows I'm not saying anything super important. When I talk about family junk, like what I'm worried about and all that, I can tell he's listening cause he writes down stuff in his notebook. He nods too, like he did just now."

"But when I talk about the lab, he gets all antsy, and will start moving around the room like he's looking for something. So I try not to talk about it too much. I think he's upset about something in there or whatever. And then-" Mikey finally faltered as he took in a breath, moving over to the gas oven where a freshly greased pan sat over an open flame. April quietly followed him, taking her bowl of whisked eggs along, "One time I tried to talk about the night we got caught."

April almost dropped her bowl of orange-yellow liquid. She forced herself to bite her tongue and listen. This was the first time that night had been mentioned since the rescue. From the way Mikey seemed to be zoned out on pouring batter and talking, she assumed he was not to aware of what he himself was actually saying. If she broke his train of thought now, he may withdraw his words and not speak about it. No, she would not ask any questions. She had to listen.

"I was drawing when I said it. I only said that I had a dream about us getting caught, but that we were all together when we got locked up, and he freaked out." Mikey said, taking a nearby spatula that April had set out and flipping a fluffy saucer over, revealing a perfectly golden surface. He was silent for a couple of seconds, and April was about to urge him to continue, when he went on, "He looked at me. Not like, in a good way either. It was kind of scary. He was glaring at me, then he stood up real quick and opened up his number two notebook. He grabbed a piece of my charcoal and started covering the paper with it. He went back to being all zoned out again after a little while, but I didn't keep talking about it."

"Wow, you really paid attention to him, huh?" April finally interrupted, afraid that this somber subject would bring Mikey down. The orange wearing turtle smiled, though, and looked up from his pancakes.

"Of course! Donnie does it for us all the time! I have to return the favor!" Mikey beamed, obviously not put down at all. April was going to ask him what he meant by that when the turtle's gaze suddenly shifted to something behind her, "Morning guys!"

April turned her gaze over to Splinter and Leonardo, who were making their way together towards the kitchen. She smiled at them, and received a curt nod from them both. Though their expressions remained placid, this simultaneous reply made April's heart well up with happiness.

Little did she know this was the start of a breakfast fiasco.


End file.
